Youth And Women Quality Centres innovative demand led and supply responsive model for last mile quality seed access in Southern Tanzania

The agricultural sector serves as a vital driver of Tanzania’s economic growth, with approximately 65% of the population relying on it directly and indirectly. Contributing about 28% to the GDP and 24% to total exports, this sector plays a crucial role in ensuring food security in the country (Brown, 2013[1]). Tanzania leads Eastern Africa in sorghum production, with the crop occupying 21% of the total cereal area, yet facing a gap between productivity and demand—a trend projected to continue as sorghum demand is expected to double by 2050 (Orr et al., 2016[2]). Similarly, groundnut, another key crop, confronts challenges with demand surpassing local production levels (Mwalongo et al., 2020[3]). To address these gaps, the Government of Tanzania instituted the Agricultural Sector Development Program (ASDP), focusing on enhancing agricultural productivity and profitability. Sorghum and groundnuts hold particular importance for women smallholder farmers, offering both food security and income opportunities. Despite increasing demand for these crops in food and beverage industries, production levels remain low, primarily due to the low adoption of improved seeds.The AVISA project, led by CIMMYT, piloted the YWQC model to address these challenges.